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Tuesday, 7 July 2015

The Leego tragedy and the subsequent withdrawal of
AMISOM and Somali troops from about a dozen towns showcases how an insurgent
group could use asymmetric warfare to benumb a stronger but inelastic military
into surrendering sections of its territories without a fight.

- - - - -

Prior to the dawn
of Friday, 26th June 2015, a suicide bomber rammed his SVBIED (suicide
vehicle-borne improvised explosive device) through the gates of Leego’s AMISOM military
base, manned by Burundian troops, before detonating his explosive load within
the base. The subsequent raid into the base by al-Shabaab fighters shadowed by
the course of ensuing events would ensure that the jihadists scored a victory
over the beleaguered AMISOM troops as the initial attack wave confounded the
defenders and disorganized their response to a well-planned incursion of
jihadists into Leego town. The fall of the base to al-Shabaab would provide the
terror group with an important psychological victory over the multinational
force as well as equip them with considerable quantity of quality military
hardware.

Aftermath of the Assault on AMISOM's Base in Leego.

Less than half a
dozen Amniyaat agents would later
scour the base for documents relating to AMISOM military operations in Somalia
and other pieces of valuable intelligence that could be mined from the smouldering
base. Al-Shabaab’s military victory in Leego would also enable them to
confidently open a broad front in South-eastern and Central Somalia where
AMISOM and SNA (Somali National Army) troops vacated their bases and towns
(sometimes without a fight) as the Sunni jihadists advanced. The Leego tragedy and
the subsequent withdrawal of AMISOM and Somali troops from about a dozen towns showcases
how an insurgent group could use asymmetric warfare to benumb a stronger but
inelastic military into surrendering sections of its territories without a
fight.

The military base was
located along a strategic (logistical) supply line for AMISOM troops based in
Mogadishu, Baidoa, and adjacent areas. The fall of the base allowed Al-Shabaab
to loot the base’s food store prior to redistributing some of the food to the
residents as their daawah unit
lectured the civilians on their obligations to support jihad. Within hours, the
SNG (Somalia National Government) acknowledged the rout after assessing that
the unfolding series of setbacks could not be promptly reversed, and thereafter
issued an official statement which condemned the attack as “heinous and
unforgivable” and that they applauded “the courage, commitment and sacrifice”
of AMISOM soldiers. The attack was also condemned by the UN, US, Germany and
Britain among a host of other Western nations.

Bloody
Friday.

Despite a string
of mischaracterizations by the international and Francophone media, the attack
at Leego military base is neither fully part of Bloody Friday nor of Vendredi Noir (Black Friday) which
occurred on 26th June 2015 when ISIL (also known as the Islamic
State, ISIS or Daesh [its Arabic acronym]) attacked Kobane and massacred
civilians, as another lone (ISIL-inspired) jihadist beheaded a civilian in
Saint-Quentin Fallavier in France. During bloody Friday, ISIL also bombed a
Shia mosque in Kuwait city and killed 27 non-combatants; an event which
threatened to rekindle Sunni-Shia sectarian strife in the wealthy Gulf Arab
state of Kuwait; while in the coastal resort town of Sousse in Tunisia, a young
Tunisian jihadist killed an estimated 39 holiday makers – including 30 British
citizens. However, in Leego, Al-Shabaab executed Burundian soldiers alongside government
administrators, but there exists no report of al-Shabaab executing civilians
during the course of the attack and its immediate aftermath.

Prelude
to the Attack.

Leego is a small
town - dominated by members of the Hudeer clan - located approximately 140
kilometres northwest of Mogadishu along the strategically important
Mogadishu-Baidoa road (which serves as the core logistical lifeline for AMISOM
troops stationed in Baidoa, Mogadishu and along the towns inbetween these two
important cities). Most notable is the fact that Leego is also just 54 kilometres
east of Burkhaba, an al-Shabaab stronghold in Bay region. It is plausible that
the Leego attack was planned in Burkhaba and the assault teams assembled there.
The assault teams compromised of members drawn from the Istishhad unit, Jabhad
forces and a Daawah team, with Amniyaat committing less than a dozen
members to the attack. Most of the combatants belonged to the Jabhad forces.

The assorted
assault teams numbered about 120 combatants and they assembled themselves under
the banner of Sheikh Abu Zubeyr Battalion
(named after the deceased former Emir of Al-Shabaab, Mokhtar abu Zubeyr [Real
Name: Ahmed Abdi Godane]) and their overall commander was Mohammed Abu Yahya. The attack on
Leego was to be prefaced by a series of diversionary attacks that would ensure
that the troops in the town were cut off from reinforcements. The IEDs to be
used in the assault were assembled and the combatants briefed on their mission
hours before the historic assault.

* * *
* *

Sheikh Abu Zubeyr Battalion

Al-Shabaab had
previously credited the Sheikh Abu Zubeyr
Battalion (a previously unknown and unheard of battalion)with ambushing an Ethiopian convoy and
killing an estimated 60 Ethiopian troops (though the actual fatalities seems to
be lower judging from the amount of captured small arms and al-Shabaab’s
admission that some Ethiopian troops escaped capture unhurt), and capturing a
considerable cache of arms and ammunition on Thursday, 11th June
2015. A relief force to aid the ambushed convoy was also ambushed by
al-Shabaab. The Sunni terrorist organization would later release the following
photos showing the aftermath of the ambush.

An AMISOM truck captured by the Sheikh Abu Zubeyr Battalion.

An AMISOM military truck on fire.

Aftermath of the initial ambush.

A militant from Sheikh Abu Zubeyr Battalion standing on top of a disabled AMISOM APC (Armoured Personnel Carrier).

Captured arms and ammunition lay side by side with a captured AMISOM truck.

Sheikh Abu Zubeyr Battalion displays their spoils of war. Note that about a dozen firearms are displayed indicating that most Ethiopian soldiers fled with their weapons.

Nonetheless, the
battalion does not seem to exist as a permanent detached and standalone combat unit
but appears to be an assorted assault battalion formed by al-Shabaab fighters
belonging to different units after their strategists and military tacticians
have identified and earmarked a military resource for an ambush. Likewise, the
battalion appears to be manned by hardened guerrilla fighters familiar with the
terrain of the area reserved for an ambush.

*
* *
* *

The
Assault.

In the early hours
of 26th June 2015, al-Shabaab attacked AMISOM and SNG military bases
located in Janale and Torotoroow towns in Lower Shabelle prior to shelling
Balidogle airstrip where the troops had retreated to reorganize. During the
process, the Baidoa-Mogadishu road was rendered impassable by the terrorists
thus obstructing AMISOM and SNG from sending reinforcement to Lower Shabelle
from bases in neighbouring Somali regions. The attack at Janale and Torotoroow baffled
the defenders of the towns who at that time misconstrued the attacks as simple
hit-and-run ambushes which partially explicates their reluctance to request
reinforcements. When it dawned on them
that the simple ambushes were fully-fledged assaults, it was already too late
as al-Shabaab was able to gain an upper hand in the battle as the defenders
fled the towns while some retreated to Balidogle airstrip thus prompting
al-Shabaab to shell the airstrip. Nonetheless, these events allowed al-Shabaab
to move and strategically deploy several assault teams to Leego town and at a
nearby SNA base without encountering any resistance from the counter-terrorism
forces who were fully engaged with countering a series of diversionary assaults.

At 0500hrs (East
Africa Time, EAT), an Istishhadi
member drove his SVBIED towards the gates of the AMISOM base in Leego. The
sentries stationed as night guards at the base opened fire at the approaching
SVBIED, but the suicide bomber was still able to ram through the gates and
immediately detonated his explosive load (this fact was confirmed by Nur Olow,
a Major in the SNA). The initial blast wave of the explosion set fire to the
adjacent vehicles before it gave way to a secondary shock wave which rippled across
the base and unto the surrounding settlements. The tandem effects of the
explosion bewildered the Burundians troops and caused confusion to set in thus
impairing a coordinated response to the initial assault wave. Reeling from the
shock of the explosion, AMISOM troops opened fire on an assault team made up of
dozens of al-Shabaab fighters armed with light machine guns and RPG who were
approaching the gates of the base.

An al-Shabaab gunman aims and fires his AK-47 rifles over an embankment towards the defenders.

Moments later, waves
of well-armed al-Shabaab fighters numbering about 100 fighters outflanked the base
where an estimated 110 soldiers were holding out and preventing the base from
falling into the hands of the terrorists. Using a combined force of small arms
fire along with heavy machine gunfire and RPGs (Rocket Propelled Grenades), the
terrorists were finally able to storm the base.

An al-Shabaab militant fires an explosive warhead into the base using an RPG-7 over an embankment.

An al-Shabaab fighter aims light-machine gunfire over an embankment.

Al-Shabaab militants aim heavy-machine gunfire towards the base using a technical parked a few metres away from the perimeter fence.

An al-Shabaab fighter on top of the embankment firing his AK-47 through the perimeter fence.

At daybreak, al-Shabaab fighters had stormed the base and gained entry into the soldiers living quarters.

The ensuing fire
fight saw al-Shabaab fighters blowing up AMISOM vehicles as they gradually
outflanked the Burundian troops who were now shooting aimlessly in all
directions to avoid being surrounded and besieged. Other soldiers fled the
base, while another group retreated into the nearby bushes leaving their
comrades behind. Two hours later, al-Shabaab fighters had closed the noose around the
base in anticipation of a final blow after gaining significant grounds inside the base after overrunning all its defensive positions. Minutes later,
al-Shabaab militants overran the entire base, and in the process, captured dozens of Burundian
troops. At this time, AMISOM conceded that its base in Leego was under attack.
At almost the same time, al-Shabaab fighters began to execute captured AMISOM soldiers.

Al-Shabaab fighters celebrate after capturing a defensive position previously held by Burundian troops inside the base.

Over half a dozen Burundian troops (obviously startled from the sleep) were executed by Al-Shabaab.

An hour later, the
governor of Lower Shabaelle, Abdikadir Mohammed Sidi, confirmed that fighting
was on-going in Leego town but declined to give the casualty figures. Two hours
later, residents reported that al-Shabaab fighters was setting fire on immobilized vehicles
stationed inside the base as the jihadists recovered the bodies of their dead
compatriots. Al-Shabaab fighters were also seen retrieving weapons from the base. Inside
the base, al-Shabaab militants desecrated and despoiled a makeshift church before setting
it alight.

An Al-Shabaab terrorist inside the Makeshift church.

An Al-Shabaab terrorist looking at a despoiled Christian Cross.

Al-Shabaab fighters within the base as smoke rises from a burning AMISOM vehicle at a distance. The residents of Leego can be seen celebrating Al-Shabaab's victory.

Leego town fell
into al-Shabaab hands minutes later and its fighters could be seen parading
through the streets calling out on people to assemble at a nearby open-air
venue to receive “authentic” religious instructions from the mujahedeenmuftis. Government employees, administrators and local security
officers were abducted, and some executed by the insurgents. Nonetheless, most
of the government employees fled upon learning that the town’s AMISOM base was
under attack.

Al-Shabaab fighters parade through Leego Town.

Al-Shabaab later
stated that over 80 AMISOM troops were killed, with Burundi – through its
military spokesman, Colonel Gaspard Baratuza - admitting that 50 of its
soldiers were killed during the raid. The most plausible figure of the actual fatalities count is about 70 AMISOM
soldiers killed. Mohammed Abu Yahya would later confirm that the base had been
overrun by al-Shabaab and its remaining military supplies looted. Abu Yahya
officiated the hoisting of al-Shabaab’s war flag at the base as locals paraded through
to appreciate the results of the assault prior to being lectured by al-Shabaab
on the importance of jihad and Islam. By Midday, al-Shabaab had gained complete
control over the military base and the surrounding Leego town with al-Shabaab’s official
spokesman, Ali Dheere (Real Name: Ali Mohamoud Raghe) reiterating that Leego is
the second Dayniile for the Burundian troops.

* * *
* *

On 20th
October 2011, al-Shabaab ambushed and massacred over 90 Burundian troops in Dayniile
neighbourhood of Mogadishu prior to parading their bodies before an audience of
perturbed Mogadishu residents.

Al-Shabaab fighters parade the bodies of dead AMISOM soldiers from Burundi in Dayniile.

* * *
* *

Ghaneema - Spoils of War.

The attack and the
subsequent fall of Leego's military base is the most appalling attack this year,
partly due to the fact that Al-Shabaab was able to lay its hands on significant
amounts of quality military hardware (most of it brand new) after the Base
defenders were defeated while some troops ran and hid in the nearby bushes -
some after removing their military uniforms and dressing as civilians. 13
Burundian soldiers would later on be rescued by Somali troops on 27th June
2015 as they blathered “Burundi, Burundi” - while raising their hands - to bemused
SNG troops.

On the other hand,
it must be noted with great concern that the weapons, ammunitions and the
assortment of military hardware captured at Leego have the capacity to change
the balance of power within Lower Shabelle region and across South-eastern and
Central Somalia in general besides providing al-Shabaab with considerable air
defence capabilities that would impair KAF (Kenya Air Force) forays into
al-Shabaab-held territories. KAF had previously conducted a number of aerial
sorties against the insurgents in Somalia without suffering any significant
damage or fatalities. That’s now set to change as Al-Shabaab relocated the
captured anti-aircraft guns to Burkhaba town where most senior al-Shabaab
leaders presently reside.

Quantities of unused Ammunition captured by al-Shabaab within the base.

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